After advancing to their first-ever state semifinal last season, WJ softball saw the departure of a senior core that had built a competitive team from the ground up, leaving the team’s future up in the air.
To answer these questions, the WJ softball team, featuring a roster with five new starters, has picked up right where they left off, beating the Gaithersburg High School Trojans 26-0 on Tuesday, March 25, and recording the team’s biggest win in three years.
After losing their season opener 14-4 to the reigning 3A state champs in Sherwood High School, the Wildcats were looking for their first win of the season against Gaithersburg. The Wildcats had not lost to the Trojans in seven years and had outscored the team 32-4 in their past four games. Tuesday would be no different.
When the dust settled at Gaithersburg High School after five innings, the Wildcats had notched 26 runs, the most since their 32-11 win against Watkins Mill High School in April 2022.
Filling in the holes left by departing seniors, a class of freshmen has taken the limelight: freshman Quinn Reynolds has slotted into centerfield, replacing former centerfielder Mackenzie Norris. Freshman Ruby Bonior plays right field, replacing Allie Berube, and replacing pitcher Sami Rosenberg, two freshman pitchers, Logan Strbak and Lizzie Robinson, now take turns at the circle. All four freshmen have older siblings on the team.
“Because of the four sets of siblings, including me and my sister, we kind of all just aren’t afraid to give each other corrections,” junior third baseman Ella Reynolds said. “I think that for me, I feel like I’m in more of a leadership position.”
To open the first inning, juniors Ella Reynolds and Alina Bonior each recorded grand slam home runs to break out to a 14-0 lead.
“It felt really good. That was my first hit of the season, and it was my first swing of the game,” Bonior said.
Three different pitchers, Logan Strbak, Lizzie Robinson and junior Shreya Doshi combined for a shutout, giving up just one hit. In total, the Wildcats had 16 hits offensively and zero errors defensively.
Next, the Cats will face the Winston Churchill Bulldogs at home on Thursday, March 27. In their last meeting, the Cats narrowly advanced past Churchill’s Division I-committed senior pitcher Maggie King in a 4-2 win in the 2024 playoffs.
“A lot of the freshmen haven’t faced pitching at this level yet, so it’s going to be challenging for them,” Bonior said. “The main thing will be not swinging at the high pitches.”
The Cats have not lost to the Bulldogs since their regular-season meeting in 2023.
